The Policies and Distractions that Caused the Revolutionary War.
The messy and disorganized British rule of the American colonies led to the outbreak of the Revolutionary War. The mismanagement of the colonies, the taxation policies that violated the colonists" rights, the distractions of foreign wars and politics in England, and mercantilist policies that benefited the English to a much greater degree then the colonists. All these establish the British incompetence in their rule over the colonies. These policies and distractions were some of the causes of the Revolutionary War. .
The interests of England within the colonies were self-centered. The English were exploiting the colonists by overseeing the colonial system of trade. This is known as mercantilism. "Mercantilism meant that the state directed all economic activities within its borders" (Blum 27). England was not attempting to make any changes that would help the colonists; in fact England was looking to profit from this system of trade. They would in fact limit the colonies more and only allow trade with the mother country and other ports in the empire (Miller 9). The English demanded that the colonies import more from England then they exported to the colonies. England were importing raw materials from the colonies and making them into exportable goods in England. They would then ship these goods to foreign markets all around the world, including the colonies. Throughout the seventeenth century, the English saw the colonies as a place to get materials, and not have to purchase them from other countries. They also a market to sell finished products after the goods had been manufactured. This was detrimental to the colonies because it prevented them from manufacturing any of the raw materials they produced, which made them more dependent upon England (Miller 9).
In addition to the unrest caused by their mercantilist policies, domestic political issues distracted them from the activities of the colonies.